Iran’s Parliament Speaker threatened Treasury bond investors as military targets, but his closing warning is what has markets rattled

Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf has escalated the ongoing conflict with the United States by warning that financial institutions and investors could be considered military targets. Ghalibaf, a former Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander, posted on X, claiming that financial entities involved in funding the U.S. military were “legitimate targets.”

According to Newsweek, he explicitly stated that U.S. Treasury bonds are “soaked in Iranians’ blood,” and ended his post with a direct message to investors: “We monitor your portfolios. This is your final notice.”

This is significant because it moves Iran’s threats from the usual military targets into the world of global finance. U.S. Treasury bonds are among the safest and most widely held financial assets in the world, held by central banks, pension funds, banks, and individual investors everywhere. Suggesting that sovereign debt holders could be targeted, even as a rhetorical warning, could seriously unsettle markets.

Iran’s financial threats add a dangerous new layer to an already unstable conflict

Current tensions are extremely high. Late last month, the U.S. and Israel targeted key military sites in Iran, reportedly killing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other government leaders. Iran responded with missile and drone strikes against Israel and several Gulf Arab states that host U.S. armed forces.

The Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway through which about 20 percent of the world’s total petroleum consumption passes, remains heavily disrupted. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has previously outlined the U.S. strategy on Iranian oil tanker access through the strait, which adds further context to how the situation is being managed.

Ghalibaf has been one of the loudest voices throughout this conflict, issuing multiple warnings on X over the past couple of weeks. His Sunday post frames financial participation in U.S. government debt as direct involvement in military action.

“Alongside military bases, those financial entities that finance the US military budget are legitimate targets,” Ghalibaf wrote. “US treasury bonds are soaked in Iranians’ blood. Purchase them, and you purchase a strike on your HQ and assets. We monitor your portfolios. This is your final notice.”

President Donald Trump recently gave Iran an ultimatum on Truth Social, threatening to destroy Iranian power plants if Tehran does not fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours. Ghalibaf fired back, warning that any attack on power plants or infrastructure would trigger retaliatory strikes on energy and oil facilities across the broader Middle East.

Meanwhile, on the domestic political front, TPUSA has been channeling large funds into a Trump-backed legislative account, signaling continued political and financial maneuvering around Trump-aligned priorities.